Forest footprints gaining visibility

Some of the world’s largest companies are set to disclose their ‘forest footprint’ for the first time, after the launch of a major new project aimed at revealing the impact of supply chains on deforestation.

A questionnaire has been sent out by the Forest Footprint Disclosure Project to the likes of Proctor & Gamble, Cargill and Exxon Mobil, in an effort to get businesses across all industry sectors to divulge their ‘forest footprints’ for the first time.

The launch of the project follows the publication of a recent Greenpeace report ‘Slaughtering the Amazon’, which claimed that a number of leading companies were falling foul of suppliers in South America, which were contributing to the deforestation of the Amazon.

The Greenpeace report created a storm among beef suppliers in Brazil, with the World Bank withdrawing a $90m loan to cattle company Bertin, as a direct result of allegations that rainforest was being cleared to make way for land designed for grazing.

It’s these kind of exposes that have left firms sourcing from the area vulnerable and that, according to Steven Ripley, a senior figure within the FFD, is forcing a change of approach.

Click here to read more.